TCA: Nova uncovers 'The Bible's Buried Secrets'

It’s not often you hear “Nova” and “shocking” in the same sentence.

But participants in “The Bible’s Buried Secrets,” a two-hour special airing Nov. 18 on the PBS program, promised this morning that the show would trigger a fair share of controversy.

The special explores the ancient Israelites’ adoption of monotheism and seeks to explain who wrote the Hebrew Bible and what influenced them. Relying on archaeological work and biblical scholarship, the show poses provocative ideas -- including the notion that many Israelites believed that God had a wife –- and disputes literal readings of the text.

“It’s a shocking film in many ways, but it’s truth, revolutionary, and it’s as fresh as yesterday,” said William G. Dever, a noted biblical archaeologist who specializes in the history of Israel.

Carol L. Meyers, a religion professor at Duke University, said that “most of us start out as naïve Bible readers and take it at face value.”

In fact, Meyers argued, “there was no consciousness about the construction of history” when the Bible was written.

The stories of Exodus and Abraham and Sarah “are unlikely to represent real historical events, but rather there’s some kernel of ancient experience in there which has survived and which helps give identity to the people at the time,” she said.

Dever said he has participated in two dozen films about the Bible, “and most of them are dreadful.”

“They either pander to the public’s misunderstanding that the role of archaeology is to prove the Bible to be true, or, at best, they’re simply dishonest, outrageously so,” he said. “And I vowed not to make any more such films until 'Nova' came along. I knew their reputation, and I knew this one would be good.

“Most people simply misunderstand archaeology and the Bible. Some of them are not going to like this film, but nobody will see this film without changing their mind about the way the Bible ought to be read.”

Nobody?

Well, with one exception.

“It’s a waste of time to argue with fundamentalists,” Dever said. “And this film doesn’t do it. It’s designed for intelligent people who are willing to change their mind.”

-- Matea Gold

Comments

[HM]

HERE WE GO AGAIN. ....ANOTHER "DA VINCI CODE"......WILL TOM HANKS BE IN IT???? COULD THIS BE PART TWO?

WHAT MAKES THEM THINK THAT THE IMPLIED "NON-INTELLIGENT" BELIEVERS WILL CARE ABOUT SUCH PROGRAM.....CHRISTIAN BELIEVERS ALTHOUGH NOT PERFECT ARE DEEPLY ROOTED IN BIBLICAL TRUTHS AND WE TRULY BELIEVE THE BIBLE IS THE WORD OF GOD WRITTEN FOR HUMANITY(2 TIMOTHY 3:16)...TOO BAD THE SECULAR MEDIA DOES NOT GET THAT...

ON THE OTHER HAND I AM SORT OF SURPRISED NOVA WILL TAKE ON SUCH A CONTROVERSIAL SUBJET. PROGRAMS LIKE THESE IS WHAT HAVE GOTTEN THIS COUNTRY IN THE SHAPE IT IS IN. MAY GOD HELP US ALL......

[SH]

I appreciate the assertion that fundamentalists are fundamentally not intelligent. I guess you can't read a book and take the words at face value anymore and still be considered intelligent. The film is apparently designed for the more secular religionists who are more interested in having their historicity translated for them by archaeologists than actual historians such as Josephus and others. The inability to find archaeological evidence supporting an event several thousand years old is poor proof that it never happened. It is more of an indication of the difficulty of the task.

[Michael Sherrod]

It's "designed for intelligent people who are willing to change their mind"? How about "It's designed for double-minded people who can't decide what they believe"? The bottom line is that NONE of these "experts", whether "fundamentalist" or "scientist", really KNOWS anything! To think that they can discern truth from scratching the surface of a society and reach back through centuries of time and accurately state what happened is ludicrous. None of them were there and they can't possibly know. The incredible thing is that these people get paid to do this. I am reminded of my father's definition of an "expert" - An "ex" is a "has-been" and a "spurt" is "a drip under pressure". Enough said.

[Ray Johannessen]

I think what we'll find here is that none of this is even NEWS--I've heard it all before, in one form or another. It's funny, and a bit scary, that these people who tend to be so smug about themselves in disproving Biblical things get paid to write this silly stuff. They hype it up to be so controversial...that's the only way it sells. When it comes down to it for me, I like to watch things like this to stay educated, in case something new really does come out of it. I confess, many Christians today really do not think about the history of the Bible, how it came about, or ask any fundamental questions that should be asked before you take something as fact. For instance, I know many Christians who still hold adamantly to the belief that Moses wrote the first five books of the Bible. And the scholarly work that proves this otherwise is nonsense, though they won't get up their courage to read about the findings. We SHOULD come at these things with an open mind, and if there is sufficient evidence, so be it--if not...then throw it aside and get on with life. It really is that simple.
If there's one thing that I really end up not liking about these types of shows is that they will ALWAYS cater to one side of the argument, leaving the viewer more confused than before. Where is honesty and the use of true reasoning these days? If anything, watch it, hopefully learn something, then get on with your life. The bottom line is that Truth is Truth, and there is far too much Truth in the Bible for this to affect the power and reality of the life that is found in Jesus Christ and his teachings.

[Lee]

It's a shame that Nova and PBS choose opinion over the TRUTH of God's Word. Opinion does not change TRUTH. Jesus said ... they be blind leaders of the blind. And if the blind lead the blind, both shall fall into the ditch. Matthew 15:14. The only way for unbelivers to find this out is to die - then they'll be believers - of course by then it will be too late to do anything about it.

[Lee]

It's a shame that Nova and PBS choose opinion over the TRUTH of God's Word. Opinion does not change TRUTH. Jesus said ... they be blind leaders of the blind. And if the blind lead the blind, both shall fall into the ditch. Matthew 15:14. The only way for unbelivers to find this out is to die - then they'll be believers - of course by then it will be too late to do anything about it.
Here's on intelligent viewer that will NOT be viewing - I don't listen to lies.

[Athenia Cato]

I just have one question. Why is asserted that fundamentalists are unintelligent? I believe myself and other Christians I know to be quite intelligent. We are simply unwilling to compromise or abandon our faith for the latest "truth." God is the only source of real truth. I choose to believe Him.

[Jan]

God is certainly more intelligent than any of us or those of us who lived 2000 years ago. The Bible was written by men. They did not have secretaries or tape recorders or video cameras to record any spoken word of God. God spoke to a simpler man who interpreted with their heart and imagination and from the 'times' they lived in. God is a living spirit and he speaks to us now through our times. Isn't it possible that he expects us to understand a more complicated part of him? Let's give NOVA a chance. OPen your mind and see how wonderous the universe is and try to see the tangible webs God leaves for us to explore. Maybe he wants us to learn.

[Rob R]

It's not surprising many religious people are scared of programs like this but...

In my opinion PBS needs to ru na good show on why people believe in wierd things. Go into wishful thinking, pattern seeking, etc. Hopefully this type of show would get people to think about why they believe what they do...especially in regards to dieties and religion.

It's not about what you believe but why you believe it.

[Ben]

I look forward to it. No one can read the Bible with honest eyes and think it is true.

[Mike]

Ah here come the fundamentalist atheists. I'd really like to see the new proof that they hope to put forward to make such a bold and specific claim. In a similar vein, I read the debate between Dr. William Craig and Dr. Bart Ehrman on the Jesus Seminar and Craig won easily on the evidence. Basically, you're likely to find some convoluted reasoning that if were universally applied would show that neither George Washington nor Napoleon were real people. This is going to be a hoot.

[Mari]

History has always been written by those in power.
The internet is wealth of information, for anyone wanting to know the truth, you can find it.
I suggest to those who want to bash anything " they DON'T WANT to believe, look before you judge.
Keeping faith in God, the way society has taught, is a poor excuse not to research.
My personal belief system has changed, but it has also brought me closer to God.

I feel sorry for those who fear the truth, or fear looking for it.

[DFC]

How can anyone doubt the intelligence of fundamentalists?

Well...there are some fundaentalists who don't give you any choice about it.

[David]

The Bye-Bull is plainly a series of fictional stories that only the gullible believe as true.

[ben]

Wow, the Fundies have already begun their compaign against this documentary!

[Rodolfo Brennero]

It is fascinating to apprehend that even knowledgeable people such as William G. Dever ( a noted biblical archaeologist who specializes in the history of Israel ), Carol L. Meyers ( a religion professor at Duke University ), and who knows how many 10th of thousands other big IQ wise men / women, never really studied the Bible to full satisfaction, even with the huge amount of work in all kind of research and fact finding we have inherited during the last 2000 years !! Shame on you !! Instead of spitting out conjectural garbage and produce another utterly distracting NOVA TV program, produce something something really preventive, useful and actual, so that, perhaps, we can apply it to our lives and get positive concrete results.

Thank you. VALE BENE. CURA UT VALEAS

Rodolfo

[George]

From an earlier post: "I guess you can't read a book and take the words at face value anymore and still be considered intelligent."

If you really took the book at face value, you must be a Reconstructionist or a fanatical Muslim. Well, jihad against Jews is obviously not in it, but genocide, stoning, women as property, etc. certainly are. The person who posted that probably read only a recent English translation, and almost certainly did not really take it at face value and sins at least most days of the year.

Of course intelligent people may find those ideas useful -- in fact, the use of the Bible to back up a philosophy of "Social Darwinism" is the unofficial policy of the Republican Party. The distinction is not intelligence, but the use of evidence-based reasoning rather than either blind unreasoning faith or the most cynical form of pragmatism.

OTOH, relying on words in some book written by unknown authors and compiled by an ancient committee serving a political agenda, without independent evidence that it is actually true, is actually REALLY stupid. So maybe "intelligence" is the correct discriminator after all.

[Matthew Lineberger]

“It’s a shocking film in many ways, but it’s truth, revolutionary, and it’s as fresh as yesterday,” said William G. Dever, a noted biblical archaeologist who specializes in the history of Israel.

********

I find it ironic that Dever lays an outright, dogmatic claim to "truth," then proceeds to categorize, degrade, judge, dare I say DISCRIMINATE against a community of people who also lay a claim on truth.

I am saddened by the attacks on persons that possess just as much worth and dignity as anyone, yet who are also men and women of faith. Why do we teach our children that some people are not "intelligent" simply because of a belief? What kind of hate-filled society does this practice foster?

Just because there is not archeological evidence for a person that lived over 4,000 years ago, does it prove, as "truth," that said person did not exist?

Why does our generation consider itself to be the cream of the human crop? Why do we boastfully talk of past generations as if they couldn't even imagine what we have decided on as being "truth?" Why are we better than they are?

What makes us, humans with lifespans of 70 or 80 years, the supreme judges of "truth" that encompasses thousands of years of time, Mr. Dever?

[Stephen Brockwell]

I hope to be able to watch this show. It seems to me that most of the comment s here are claiming that it is not worth watching, only the Bible is true, etc. I having not seen it yet, do not know what it actually says and won't have an opinion of it until I see it. Kinda like "see the evidence, draw the conclusion". Unlike the fundamentalists "draw the conclusion, find or make up the evidence to fit it."

Steve

[Stephen Brockwell]

To quote a previous comment "PROGRAMS LIKE THESE IS WHAT HAVE GOTTEN THIS COUNTRY IN THE SHAPE IT IS IN"

I beg to differ with you Sir/Ma'am: If our country is 90% Christian or believers like most Christians/believers say then THEY have gotten this country into the shape it is, not shows like this.

Steve